Crossed Dimensions
by Steel Fairy
Summary: Part 4 in the FRtR canon. The news of Sonic's death has hit Mario harder than anyone could have ever anticipated, and Mario is finding it difficult to move on. When a mysterious stranger who is a near exact spitting image of Sonic appears in the Mushroom Kingdom it falls to Mario to get him back to his dimension, but his own emotions may make it easier said than done. Complete.
1. Familiar Face

**AN: Hey look, Steel didn't keep her promise! Let's throw peanuts at her and call her names!  
**

 **I know I said I wouldn't start any more multi-chaptered projects until _Throughout the Years_ was finished, but that story only has about five chapters left and I've had an idea for a fic about Mario and Boom!Sonic meeting for ages now. So... that's my reasoning and I'm staying by it. I should mention that updates for this story will most likely be sporadic at best though, as I'm really trying to get _Throughout the Years_ finished.  
**

 **This is indeed a continuation of the story that took place in _From Rivalry to Romance, Forgotten Memories_ and _Over,_ so knowledge of those fics is vital going into this one. Like with all multi-chaptered projects of mine, reviews will be answered at the end of each chapter. With that out of the way, please enjoy!  
**

* * *

 _~Crossed Dimensions~_

/~/

 _~Chapter One: Familiar Face~_

Get up. Get dressed. Comb hair. Eat breakfast. Brush teeth.

It was the pattern Mario had fallen into for the past three months, his morning rituals altered to an almost robotic trance as he listlessly wandered around his and his brothers shared house.

This hadn't gone unnoticed by Luigi. The spark of life in Mario's eyes was gone, the smile wiped clean off his face. He knew why too - it had been ever since they'd received the news of Sonic's death that Mario had fallen into this state of depression. Luigi sighed as he eyed his brother across the table, staring down at the piece of toast in front of him. He hadn't taken a single bite since he'd sat down five minutes ago, and eventually Luigi sighed and slammed his mug onto the table, the resulting bang startling Mario out of his thoughts.

"What was that for?" he asked, noticing the annoyance on Luigi's face.

"Look, I get that you loved him. You made that crystal clear. But it's been nearly three months bro. You need to move past this grieving and move on with your life!"

"That's easy for you to say," Mario muttered darkly. "How would you feel if you lost Daisy?"

"I would be sad for awhile, but I'd move on because that's what she'd want me to do. And if I recall, didn't you say that Sonic said that you should move on and find someone else?"

"It's different," Mario argued. "We broke up, then he died. I never got a chance to reconcile with him. I never even got to fully accept that we'd broken up before he was killed! So of course I'm going to be rattled, and no, I'm not going to be moving on for quite some time." The legs of his chair scraped against the wood floor as he stood. "I'm going for a walk."

"Bro..." Luigi tried, but the front door slammed shut before he could say anything more. Dropping his face in his hands Luigi groaned before shaking his head and gathering up the breakfast dishes, figuring getting started on chores would be a great distraction.

/~/

It was warm and breezy in the Mushroom Kingdom that morning. Birds were chirping and there wasn't a cloud in the sky, the sun glistening off of Peach's Castle and the statue of Rabbid Peach in the courtyard. Mario smiled faintly as he recalled that adventure, before he returned to frowning. That had happened less than six months ago. Back before Sonic had celebrated his nineteenth birthday. Back before Dr. Eggman had revealed that he was Sonic's father. Back before everything had taken a turn for the worse.

Now, Mario wasn't the type of person to hate. He'd never really hated Sonic when they were still rivals, and he'd openly admitted to wishing that Bowser would be an ally to the Mushroom Kingdom than an enemy. But Mario absolutely _loathed_ Dr. Eggman with every fiber of his being for what he'd done, not just to Sonic but to the whole of Sonic's world. He'd always thought that Sonic was exaggerating whenever he went into detail about his adventures since Sonic was prone to adding embellishment, but after seeing what the Doctor was capable of firsthand made him realize just how dangerous a villain he really was.

Mario sighed deeply, taking off his hat and running a hand through his hair. He hadn't realized that he'd wandered into the Goomba Woods, but strangely enough he found none of what the Woods were named after wandering around. Shrugging he sat down on a stump in order to collect his thoughts.

Sonic had been the one to break off their relationship after their clash of morals. Sure, they'd both been mad, but if Mario knew that it would lead to them breaking up he wouldn't have been so aggressive with Sonic. Reaching into his pocket he produced a purple and teal guitar pick suspended on a black cord - the present he'd given Sonic for his birthday that had been tossed back at him when they broke up. He sadly gazed at it as he ran his thumb over the smooth surface, Luigi's words ringing in his ears.

 _'Weeg is right, I should move on. It's not like I can have any sort of future with him now.'_

Mario sighed, standing and intending on returning to his home to patch things up with Luigi. That is, until something caught his eye behind a bush. Curiosity got the better of him and he cautiously wandered over, his eyes widening as he took in the very familiar figure lying unconscious in the dirt.

 _'It can't be... Sonic?!'_

Or... was it? Mario frowned as he kneeled next to the figure; while this hedgehog indeed resembled his dead ex-boyfriend, there were a few significant differences. Firstly, this hedgehog had let the fur on his arms grow in, and he wore a brown neckerchief. Not to mention he had an abundance of sports tape wrapped around his hands and feet. But other than that... this hedgehog was the spitting image of Sonic.

Before he could figure out what was going on the hedgehog stirred, opening his eyes that were the exact same green as Sonic's were. He groaned, sitting up and holding his head.

"Ugh, well _that_ was unpleasant," he complained before taking in his surroundings. "Now where did I end up this time?"

Mario recovered from his shock and cleared his throat, the hedgehog whipping his head around to face him. Before Mario could get a word in the hedgehog broke into a wide grin, eyeing Mario from top to bottom. "Well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes." he rather bluntly stated, and Mario felt heat creep into his cheeks. What was it with strangers hitting on him recently? First Rabbid Peach, then the Lava Queen...

"I'm Sonic the Hedgehog, Hero Extraordinaire," the hedgehog continued proudly, standing and doing an elaborate bow. "And you are...?"

What was actually happening right now? Mario blinked several times, vaguely aware that this Sonic was taller than the one he'd known and his quills were scruffier as he thought about what to say.

"I'm Mario." he finally said lamely, extending his hand for Sonic to shake. Sonic smiled as he clasped his hand in Mario's.

"Well, it's nice to meetcha Mario! Now, can ya tell me where exactly I am so that that I can try an' find my way back home?"

So... this Sonic obviously didn't recognize him. Mario relaxed at that bit of information, it meant that this Sonic wouldn't be hostile thanks to an unresolved rivalry. Finally, a lucky break. "You're in the Mushroom Kingdom. Um... can you remember how you may have got here?"

"Oh, I know how I got here alright," Sonic snorted. "Tails came up with this brand new invention that he said could transport objects between dimensions. And _yeah_ Sticks said she dreamed about forks and bottles last night, but how was I supposed to know she'd be right in that I'd get sent to another dimension?"

Mario blinked. "Well, at least you know how you got here." he pointed out.

"So do you have any way to send me back?" Sonic asked. "I mean, I wouldn't be surprised if Tails suddenly appeared out of nowhere like that time I got stuck in another plane of existence, but if I can make it back on my own that would be great."

"I have a friend who may be able to help," Mario replied. "But first, how about we stop by another friend of mine and have something to eat and get your bearings before we set out?"

"Do you think they can whip up some chili dogs?" Sonic questioned hopefully. Mario couldn't help but crack a grin; at least _some_ things stayed the same.

"I'm sure she'd be able to."


	2. The Not-So Princess Stereotype

_~Chapter Two: The Not-So Princess Stereotype~  
_

Mario kept a watchful eye on Sonic as said hedgehog walked beside him, head turning this way and that taking in his new surroundings. After a moment he let out a low whistle. "Man, this place is gorgeous! We have nothin' like this in Hedgehog Village."

"Hedgehog Village?" Mario questioned. Another difference to note. "Was it named after you by any chance?"

Sonic shook his head. "Nah, it was actually named after my friend Amy since our friend Sticks owns the village an' they're best friends." Upon seeing the confusion on Mario's face Sonic snorted. "It's, uh, kinda a long story..."

"I'd imagine so." Mario replied lightly as he led Sonic up the path that led to Peach's Castle. He watched as Sonic curiously gazed at the statue of Rabbid Peach, before stopping as he stared up at the castle in bewilderment.

"Sooo... where exactly are we goin'?"

"One of the friends I was telling you about lives here. She's the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom you see."

Sonic blinked. "How does a plumber like yourself end up friends with a princess?"

"I rescued her long ago from the King of the Koopa's, Bowser. And since then I've continued to rescue her, and naturally a friendship bloomed between us."

Sonic hummed. "Man, you're kinda lucky to be friends with a princess. The only princesses I know are the ones in the video games I play with my buds."

Mario uncomfortably smiled. Yet another difference between this Sonic and the one that he'd known.

Wandering up to the door Mario knocked a few times and after a moment the door opened revealing the blue Toad that had accompanied him, Luigi and Peach in the Sprixie Kingdom.

"Good morning Mario!" Toad brightly sang, before his eyes landed on Sonic. "And you must be-"

Mario put his hand over the Toad's mouth in order to keep him from saying anything that could reveal the existence of another Sonic. "Toad, is Peach here at the moment?"

"Yes, she's in the throne room!" Toad confirmed once Mario had removed his hand from his mouth. "You can go right on in!"

 _"Grazie,_ Toad." Mario thanked, before motioning Sonic to follow him. As soon as they were inside the castle Sonic turned to Mario in curiosity.

"So... what exactly was that... thing?"

Mario chuckled. "That was a Toad. They make up most of the populace here in the Mushroom Kingdom, and several of them happen to be Peach's retainers."

"But... his name is also Toad?" Sonic questioned with a quirked eyeridge. Mario could only shrug.

"All of their names are Toad, except for Toadette, Toadsworth, and Captain Toad. You'll know them when you see them."

Sonic slowly nodded, having nothing more to say as Mario led him through the halls of the castle, towards Peach's throne room. The closer he got the more anxious he got - he hoped Peach wouldn't say anything that would raise suspicion with this Sonic.

Mario could hear Peach's voice before they even entered the throne room, and he could detect a harsh edge to all of her words. Entering the throne room he found her in a discussion with Toadsworth, her arms folded and face scrunched in a frown. Upon realizing she had company she shooed Toadsworth away and put on a bright smile for her guests.

"Good mor-" she began, before her voice caught in her throat at the sight of Sonic, her eyes widening as she slowly looked between both him and Mario. "-ning." she finished, clearly in a state of shock. Before either her or Mario could say anything more, Sonic sharply gasped and promptly bowed before suddenly being in front of Peach, grasping one of her hands while bending down on one knee.

"Forgive my casual attire, fairest Princess Tangerine, but I was not expecting to find you in real life, let alone in this dimension." he greeted in a faux British accent, before he planted a kiss on her hand. Peach could only blink multiple times in shock.

"Uh..."

"Sonic, this is Princess Peach Toadstool of the Mushroom Kingdom." Mario corrected, to which Sonic reeled at the name and took a few steps back, observing the princess in front of him.

"But... you're the spitting image of Princess Tangerine, the heroine of one of my favourite video games of all time!" Sonic gasped. "Uh... forgive me, your highness." he hastily bowed, to which Peach managed to lightly giggle.

"It's nice to meet you, Sonic the Hedgehog," her eyes met Mario's, an unspoken question lingering between them. "May you excuse Mario and I for a moment?"

"Hm? Oh yeah, sure." Sonic waved his hand dismissively. Peach smiled before motioning Mario into the adjacent room, shutting the door once both of them were inside.

"Mario... what's going on?" Peach whispered.

"He seems to be a Sonic from a different dimension," Mario explained. "As you could probably gather, he doesn't recognize any of us either."

"So you don't have a rivalry..." Peach realized. "What are you going to do?"

Mario bit his bottom lip. "I can't just leave him to fend for himself, so I'll see if Professor E. Gadd can send him back to his dimension."

Peach frowned. "Are you sure you'll be able to? He is... still a Sonic after all."

Mario was quiet before he heaved a sigh and nodded. "I can do it. I... I need to move on eventually. Maybe, in some strange way, it can help me get over him."

Peach sadly smiled and gently rubbed Mario's arm. "Alright then. I suppose we should go back out there, he's probably wondering what happened to us."

Both Peach and Mario stepped out of the room and rejoined Sonic who brightly smiled at the both of them.

"So Sonic," Peach began. "Mario says you're from a different dimension?"

"Apparently so," Sonic replied. "Sooo... how exactly are we gettin' me back to Hedgehog Village?"

"I have a friend who goes by Professor E. Gadd. He may be able to help you return to your own dimension."

"Great!" Sonic exclaimed. "If he's anythin' like Tails, I'm sure he'll be able to, no problem!"

"I'll have the Toads prepare a couple of backpacks and food for your journey since it's quite a long journey," Peach spoke up. "And why don't we all have some cake before you have to leave?"

"I'm afraid there is no time, Princess." a new voice rang out, and Mario noticed how Peach's eyes narrowed as Toadsworth re-entered the throne room, his cane clicking on the floor as he approached the group.

"I believe there is plenty of time." Peach shot back, her friendly demeanor turning hostile and her eyes hardening to ice as she folded her arms once again. Mario looked between Peach and Toadsworth before shrugging at Sonic who had been giving him a questioning stare.

"Princess, you have one hour to get ready. I'll meet you here. Do not be late."

Toadsworth wandered out of the throne room while Peach glared a hole in the back of his head. After a moment she sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "My apologies, it appears that we cannot have cake today." She snapped her fingers and almost immediately a Toad was at Peach's side. "Please help prepare a couple of backpacks and food for about a week for Mario and his friend here."

"Sonic, would you mind helping the Toads prepare the backpacks?" Mario asked, and while Sonic wanted to protest he noticed the way Mario was looking at Peach and realized it was a subtle way to get him out of the room.

"Yeah, sure, no prob!"

Sonic followed the Toad out of the room, asking him if the mushroom on his head was a part of his body or a hat while Mario turned to Peach, concern in his eyes. "What was that all about with Toadsworth?"

Peach sighed heavily, sinking into her throne. "I'm meeting suitors today," she replied flatly, her voice clipped. "Ever since Bowser tried to force my hand in marriage, he's been rather... _persistent_... about marrying me off to a neighboring kingdoms prince."

"I thought you were going to tell him about Rosalina." Mario replied with a quirked eyebrow. Peach sadly shook her head.

"It wouldn't do any good. The rules of this kingdom state that I must be married to a prince to be crowned queen and keep the bloodline going. It's not about being in love, it's about joining two kingdoms together."

"That's not right." Mario whispered. Peach sadly smiled.

"I'm a princess. It's my duty, whether it's right or not," she gave Mario a curious look. "Are you sure you're going to be alright, Mario?"

Mario gave a half-hearted chuckle. "I guess we'll see." he mumbled. Peach leaned down to give him a hug.

"Be careful on your journey Mario. I'll be praying for you."

 _"Grazie."_ Mario thanked, before turning and exiting the throne room. Peach watched him go, before sighing once again and reaching into the pocket of her dress, producing a small picture.

"Rosie..." she murmured sadly, before retreating to her room.

* * *

 _ **Replies**_

 **TheGameNguyener:** Oh, this story is part of the main canon, but think of it as more of the bizzaro episode of the series. The two stories I'm planning to follow this one are going to be more in line with the rest of the series. Thank you for the review! **  
**

 **GirlOnDarkerSide:** You bring up a good point about Boom! Sonic not knowing about Modern Sonic. I wonder if he'll ever discover there's another version of him... hmmm. It's going to be interesting indeed. Thank you for the review!

 **lovemet123:** Well, my goal with this fanfic is to make more people like Boom!Sonic, since I was in the same boat at first and then I gave the cartoon a try and it appealed to my sense of humor. And Fire & Ice was a pretty decent game as well. Thanks for the review.

 **Pamitydesu01:** Honestly, my idea for this fic wasn't part of the FRtR canon at first. But when Forgotten Memories went in the direction it did and I wrote Over, I realized that this would be a good story to go with to help break up tension a bit and give Mario something to do while he thinks the Sonic he knew is dead (when he's actually taking part in the events of Sonic Forces). Thank you for the review!

* * *

 **AN: Yeah, you're gonna be seeing a lot of background PeachxRosalina whenever I decide to ship Mario off with someone else.**

 **I also realize Sonic has been a bit... _bland..._ in these first couple of chapters. That changes next chapter when we get into the meat of his character, and where his differences with Modern Sonic start to become more noticeable. **

**~Steel**


	3. Bonding through Exposition

**AN: Lots of references to the TV show in this chapter, just as a heads up. And also, I've started a community dedicated to fics focusing on the interactions between Mario, Sonic, and their friends! Be sure to check it out if that's something you seem interested in!  
**

* * *

 _~Chapter Three: Bonding through Exposition~_

Mario and Sonic were only a few feet away from the castle when Sonic turned to Mario, a coy look on his face. "Sooo... you and the Princess are...?" he questioned, playfully ribbing Mario.

"Friends," Mario finished. "We're friends, nothing more."

"Wait, really?" Sonic questioned, shock evident in his tone. "But, the two of ya seem so close..."

"She is one of my closest friends," Mario admitted. "And yes, I did have a crush on her at one point. But even if she did return my feelings, the rules of this kingdom are very strict. She must marry a price of a neighboring kingdom in order to be crowned queen and keep the bloodline going, I'm afraid."

"Sounds complicated," Sonic pointed out. "Glad there's nothin' like that in Hedgehog Village. The only thing we gotta worry about is good ol' Eggman comin' by with his zany scheme of the week, and the Lightning Bolt Society on occasion."

Mario's pulse quickened at Sonic mentioning the Doctor and the Lightning Bolt Society. So... they existed in that universe as well. However, he knew he needed to play dumb to not raise suspicion. "Eggman?" he asked innocently.

"Yeah, he's this Doctor who lives alone on an island with his two robots named Orbot an' Cubot. Funny thing is that Orbot an' Cubot aren't threatenin' at all, and most of the time come tell us when Egghead has some new scheme planned. Now that I think about it, most of his robots don't turn out that bad. There's Friendbot, an' Mombot, and the renegade Cubot's..."

"So... what exactly does he do?" Mario pried.

"He likes to think of himself as an evil overlord, but in actuality he's just kinda a mild annoyance. I've eaten food at Meh Burger that's more dangerous than him. All an' all, he's more like a Saturday morning cartoon villain than an actual threat."

Interesting... "And the Lightning Bolt Society?" Mario pressed.

"They're this group of self-proclaimed evildoers, but most of the time it's just mild pranks an' stuff like that. The only time they were even mildly dangerous was when they let a bunch of sheep out of the pen and they rampaged across the village. An' I don't care what anyone says, _we totally would have beat them at bowling!_ "

Mario blinked, slowly coming to the realization that this Sonic came from a universe where world-ending threats simply didn't exist. It almost seemed as if Eggman wasn't even his father in this dimension. However, there were still more things he wanted to know about his new traveling companion. As the border of Toad Town came into view, Mario turned to Sonic again. "So... tell me a bit more about yourself. Do you have a family?"

"What is this, twenty questions?" Sonic grumbled. Still, he sighed and looked to the sky thinking about how to respond. "I don't actually have a livin' family," Sonic admitted. "I can't remember anythin' about them. Still, my friends are a family to me, 'specially Tails. He's my best friend, and kinda like a little brother. An' Knuckles is kinda like that brother who doesn't know what's goin' on most of the time, but just kinda goes with it. Sticks is paranoid about everythin', but I'd be lyin' if I said she wasn't like a sister to me. An' Amy..."

Sonic went silent, and Mario noticed his muzzle had gone a light shade of pink. "Amy... is my friend who I absolutely have no romantic feelings for whatsoever!" he nervously laughed, his muzzle turning a dark shade of red. Liar. "But that's enough about me," Sonic nervously laughed, scratching his nose. "What about you? You got any sort of family?"

"I have a twin brother named Luigi," Mario explained. "And my parents live on the planet Doppel, someplace you probably haven't heard of."

"Can't say I have." Sonic admitted. A sly look crossed his face and he turned to Mario with a quirked eyeridge. "An' since you an' the Princess aren't a thing... is there anyone else?"

 _'Shit.'_

"Uh... not currently." Mario awkwardly smiled, while Sonic tilted his head.

"So there was someone?"

 _'Oh no oh no oh no what do I do I have to lie... I've got it!'_

"Back when I was a teenager," Mario carefully worded. "I had a girlfriend, Pauline. We ended up breaking it off though, but we're still good friends."

"An' that's it?" Sonic questioned incredulously. "Someone as handsome as yourself hasn't dated since then? You're what, twenty-five?"

"Almost twenty-seven," Mario corrected. "And you're one to talk. You're nineteen and you haven't had the nerve to ask out Amy."

 _"We're just friends!"_ Sonic yelled a bit too loudly before giving Mario a peeved look. "An' where'd you get the idea that I'm nineteen from? I'm twenty-two, almost twenty-three for your information."

 _'...What?'_

How was that possible? The Sonic he'd known had been nineteen... unless...

 _'Of course, he lost three years when we were at the Smash Mansion.'_

"Um... my mistake." Mario apologized. He quickly shifted topics. "So... what else do you do aside from stopping Eggman and the Lightning Bolt Society?"

Sonic smirked. "Well, the list goes on forever..."

/~/

"An' then, I wake up to find that Knuckles picked up a hitchhiker while me and Tails were asleep, an' it turned out he was the Bike Chain Bandit! After a bunch of zany antics which involved a car chase, we finally made it to the other side of the island. But guess what?"

"You were late for the concert?" Mario guessed.

"No, we were a _month early!_ Though it was awesome when we did manage to play an' see all the fans that came out to support us. Though really, they didn't have much of a choice since Justin Beaver's musical career ended an' no other musicians seem to live on the island. So, we're the only source of musical entertainment for them."

Mario hummed, before glancing around at where they were. They were close to the desert at this point, and Mario wiped the sweat off of his brow as he tugged uncomfortably at the collar of his shirt. If only he'd brought some cooler clothes with him...

"We should turn in for the night." Mario murmured, looking up at the sky which had turned a light shade of lavender. Sonic nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, it is gettin' pretty late. We should probably crash in that conveniently placed cave right over there." he pointed to a hole in the mountainside that was big enough for the both of them. Seeing no other viable options, Mario instantly agreed and both of them headed into the cave, shrugging off their backpacks.

"Aw man," Sonic groaned. "We don't have any firewood to warm up food."

"We don't need a campfire." Mario replied. He held out his palm and closed his eyes, a flame appearing in his hand a moment later. Seeing Sonic's dumbfounded face, Mario smiled. "I'm pyrokenetic." he explained.

Sonic blinked, handing over the sandwich he was holding. Mario used the flame in his hand to toast the bread, and once it was warm enough he handed it back off to Sonic who blinked in response before taking it back. "Thanks..." he mumbled numbly.

"Don't mention it." Mario couldn't help but laugh as he warmed up his own food, before sitting against one of the cave walls. The two ate in silence before Sonic eventually broke the silence.

"This is _so_ much better than what Meh Burger tries to pass as food."

/~/

Mario lay down his sleeping bag and crawled inside, getting comfortable before turning his head slightly to glance at Sonic who had already gone to sleep. He'd learned a lot about this Sonic, and was trying to focus on his differences with the Sonic he knew rather than their similarities.

It was so difficult though when he had the same expression on his face when he was sleeping though. And as Mario had found out within the past ten minutes, this Sonic was prone to snoring as well. Oh well, at least Mario was used to it.

Sighing, Mario turned to face the ceiling, closing his eyes and trying to get to sleep. His dreams were about the Sonic he knew that night, which left him with a strange, empty feeling when he woke in the morning.

* * *

 _ **Replies**_

 **TheGameNguyener:** I guess we'll have to see if Boom! Sonic will ever find out about his counterpart! Thank you for the review!

 **Silver1612:** Yes, Rosie is short for Rosalina. I've seen a couple of other authors shorten her name to that, and it sounds like a nickname Peach would give her. Thank you for the review!

 **Pamitydesu01:** Yeah, Peach is in a terrible situation. I've always found that unfair as well. Thank you for the review!

 **WordsOnAScreen:** I'll admit, it's not something you come across often! Which is probably why I was so drawn to it in the first place... Anyway, thank you for the review!


	4. The Plot Thickens

_~Chapter Four: The Plot Thickens~  
_

It took a bit for Mario and Sonic to head out again in the morning. As Mario quickly found out, this Sonic was a bit on the lazy side as well and groaned when Mario finally managed to wake him. Though in all honesty Mario thought Sonic would be happy that he'd woken him up, since it seemed like he was having a nightmare as he'd been mumbling something about people complaining about how he looked or something like that.

It didn't take long for the two of them to reach the desert, a sandstorm almost immediately kicking up and forcing Mario to cover his nose and mouth with his hat, while Sonic did the same with his neckerchief.

"I wish I had Blue Force 1 with me." Sonic piped up a few minutes later. "It would make traversin' this wasteland a snap!"

"What's Blue Force 1?" Mario asked.

"My car motorbike thingy." Sonic explained. "It's come in handy on multiple occasions, like that time me an' my friends had to go get a new Meroke Crystal 'cause it's the source of power of the village an' the first one kinda died. But then there was that time that Mark the Tapir used it an'..."

Mario glanced at Sonic curiously when he went silent. "And what?"

"He kidnapped me an' made me eat pie an' act out his fanfiction he'd written about me! An' I took a peek at some of it when he was out of the room, and some of it was... uh, how do I put this... very... _adult oriented."_

"Um, people... _write..._ stories about you?" Mario asked, disturbed.

"Sure do!" Sonic confirmed. "In fact, we may be part of one right now." He made a point of looking directly at the screen, as if to say, 'Yeah, that's right, I can break the fourth wall too'.

"What are you looking at?" Mario questioned, to which Sonic shook his head and turned towards his companion.

"Nothin' to concern yourself with." he said cryptically, before he turned to Mario in curiosity. "So how much longer do we gotta tread through this?"

"It'll be awhile," Mario sighed. He frowned as he squinted through the dust clouding his vision. "It's strange though. There aren't usually many sandstorms around here. I wonder if there's some sort of disturbance."

"Like that up there?" Sonic pointed out, shielding his face and looking up at the sky. Mario turned his eyes upwards and didn't see anything at first, until a familiar high-pitched laugh echoed in the air and a magic blast hit the ground in front of him.

"Kamek." Mario growled, getting into a fighting stance. Sonic looked between Mario and Kamek before getting into a fighting stance of his own, eyeing Mario in curiosity.

"Who is this guy? Since it's a common rule that no one can attack us an' time seemingly stands still while deliverin' exposition, make sure to not leave out a single detail."

"Remember when I mentioned Bowser?" Mario began. "This is a Magikoopa who has been with him since the day he was born, almost like a father figure. When Luigi and I were being delivered to our parents by the stork, he managed to separate us and relentlessly chased down the Yoshi's who were helping me get back to Luigi. He also nearly killed me one time-"

He was cut off by another beam of magic, catching both him and Sonic off-guard and causing Sonic to frown up at the Magikoopa. "Hey! Stop breakin' standard cliche's! Mario's deliverin' some important exposition here!"

Kamek remained silent as he studied Sonic, before his eyes grew wide and he gasped. "It can't be..." he mumbled, causing Mario to break out into a cold sweat. "Lord Bowser said that you had been disposed of. I must inform him at once that that's not the case!"

Kamek cackled and vanished, taking the sandstorm with him and bringing a welcoming silence after the wind had been screaming for so long. Sonic blinked, before turning to Mario with a cocked head. "So what was that all about? He was actin' like he knew me or somethin'. I mean, it would be flatterin' if my heroics had made it to another dimension, but that doesn't seem to be the case."

"I don't know," Mario lied. "Maybe he mistook you for someone else?"

Sonic eyed Mario suspiciously, but didn't pressure him about the issue further. "Well, whatever. C'mon, the sooner we get outta this desert, the happier I'll be."

/~/

"What do you mean Sonic is in this dimension?!"

Kamek shrank back at Bowser's outburst, but continued on with what he had to say. "Yes, sire. Though I thought Sonic had been killed and that's why Mario had fallen into depression?"

Bowser shot a glare at Kamek. "Of course Sonic's not dead, not yet at least." he growled. "Eggman has him locked up on the Death Egg while he takes over the world. He spread the rumor that Sonic was dead so that those idiots would lose all hope and surrender themselves over to him. As far as I know Eggman still has him held prisoner, so how could he have escaped and made it here to this dimension without helping his own?" He pondered on the question for a moment before jabbing a claw at Kamek. "Tell me, what did this so-called 'Sonic' look like?"

"The usual - blue fur, green eyes," Kamek began. "Though the fur on his arms had grown out, and he was wearing a brown neckerchief. He looked a bit taller too."

Bowser raised an eyebrow in interest. "Is that so?" he murmured. "In that case... he's most likely from a different dimension." a wicked grin played on his lips. "They're probably going to see that old fool, Professor E. Gadd, to return him to his world! Kamek, I need you to go pay the Professor a little 'visit' and 'borrow' something of his."

/~/

Night had fallen across the desert and the duo of traveling companions had found a hidden area beneath a cliff to rest for the night. As Mario prepared some food he noticed Sonic undoing his sports tape, and shaking another roll of it from his quills, reapplied it to his hands and feet.

"So what's the importance of the sports tape?" Mario questioned and Sonic snickered, lifting his eyes to meet Mario's.

"Well, the stuff on my hands adds an extra layer of protection when I'm fightin' hands on. The stuff on my feet helps with ankle support. Plus, it just looks cool. Kind of a team staple actually. Everyone wears it 'cept for Sticks, she puts in on her boomerang."

"Interesting..." Mario murmured. Sonic grinned, holding out the roll to Mario.

"You want some?"

"What?"

"Sports tape. You want some?" Sonic repeated. Mario pondered on the question for a moment before he smiled and shrugged.

"Okay, sure. I guess it wouldn't hurt."

"Great!" Sonic scooted closer to Mario, unraveling some tape from the roll. "Where do you want it? Your gloves? Or your shoes perhaps? Or maybe..." he sat up on his knees. "We could put some on your hat!"

"How about the hat and shoes?" Mario suggested.

"Excellent decision!" Sonic chirped, carefully wrapping the sports tape around the middle of Mario's shoes. Mario took off his hat and handed it off to Sonic who pondered on where to put the sports tape for a moment before he wrapped it around the brim, handing it back off to Mario with a smile.

"There! You're now officially an honorary member of Team Sonic, just like FriendBot. Now, to really make it official you'd need a communicator," he lifted his wrist to show off his blue one. "Buuut, we'd kinda need Tails for that, an' he's not here sooo... we'll just pretend that you do, 'kay?"

Mario gave a small, agreeing chuckle before noticing that Sonic's gaze had fixated on his communicator, a frown on his face. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"Me? Yeah, of course I'm fine, I'm always fine." Sonic replied. "I'm just... a little worried about the team, that's all. I hope they're doin' alright without me."

"I'm sure they are," Mario assured. "If they're as strong as you make them out to be, then I'm sure you have nothing to worry about."

Sonic lightly smiled, gaze turning to Mario. "Thanks Mar."

Mar...

The familiar nickname hit Mario like a punch in the stomach, bringing with it the memories of his ex-boyfriend... _dead_ ex-boyfriend that he was desperately trying to suppress. Every time Sonic had called him by that affectionate name seemed to play all at once in his mind, and it was too much for him to handle.

Ignoring the concerned look Sonic had, he crawled to the entrance of their rest area and threw up over the edge.

/~/

"Mar?" Sonic called, going to the entrance as well and gently rubbing his back. "You alright there?"

"Don't call me that." Mario pleaded in a hushed whisper. His face was pale, he almost looked like how Eggman had when he thought his lair was haunted. "Please don't call me that."

Sonic opened his mouth to ask why, but noticed tears forming in the corner of Mario's eyes. He bit his tongue after that, knowing full well that he couldn't offer the needed comfort to a person in distress. One of the things he lacked in. Instead, he backed off and sat against the back wall of their hideout.

"Okay. I'll just call you Mario then, man."

 _"Grazie."_ Mario thanked, before crawling back to where he was before he'd emptied his stomach.

It was a long, awkward night after that.

* * *

 _ **Replies**_

 **GirlOnDarkerSide:** Thank you for the review! **  
**

 **TheGameNguyener:** See, and Sonic's 'done with everything' face and attitude is why I like Boom!Sonic so much, because I look at him and all I can think is 'same' because I find myself pulling that same face literally every day. I understand how it's not appealing to some, but I relate with his attitude so much that I can't help but like him. Thank you for the review!

 **Pamitydesu01:** Yeah... Boom!Sonic being there isn't helping as much as he thought it would. Thank you for the review!

 **Silver1612:** It's true, Mario's emotions are getting in the way slightly. Thank you for the review! **  
**


	5. Don't You 'Sea' I Just Want to Race?

_~Chapter Five: Don't You "Sea" I Just Want to Race?~  
_

If Mario thought Sonic didn't handle the desert well, it was nothing compared to his reaction when they reached the large expanse of ocean they'd have to cross. Sonic immediately froze upon seeing it, thickly swallowing before he turned to Mario with a panicked glance.

"Please tell me we aren't goin' in there." he pleaded. Mario gave him an apologetic smile; apparently this Sonic had aquaphobia as well.

"It's the only way to get to where we need to go. I'm sorry."

Sonic's eyes darted about, desperately trying to come up with some sort of solution that involved him not going into the water. Eventually he snapped his fingers and beamed brightly. "I've got it!"

Mario watched as Sonic tapped his communicator, before recoiling in shock as what looked like a thin blue beam of electricity uncoiled itself. Sonic couldn't help but snicker at Mario's face, before grabbing the end of it and holding it out in front of him. "I bet you're wonderin' what this is, huh?"

"A little." Mario replied, eyebrow raised. Sonic smirked, twirling the beam around like a lasso before tossing it at a branch of a nearby palm tree, his smirk widening as it secured around the branch.

"This is my Enerbeam," Sonic proudly explained. "Another staple of the team. Tails made 'em for us, an' they've sure come in handy in the past. An' since I can't swim..." Sonic eyed the palm trees dotting the landscape. "I'll just take the high road instead!"

Mario blinked, impressed by how fast Sonic was able to come up with a solution. After a moment he broke into a grin and nodded. "Sounds like a plan then!"

With Sonic swinging from tree to tree and Mario hopping from platform to platform, the duo slowly began their trek through the water-covered landmass.

"So how come the weather's so wonky here in the Mushroom Kingdom?" Sonic called down to Mario after a minute. "I mean, it was spring weather, then there was a desert, an' now it feels like summer. What's up with that?"

"I don't know," Mario replied. "It's always been like this for as long as I've lived here. I've learned it's easier to not ask questions, it makes more sense that way."

"Vague answers that don't explain anythin' are good enough for me!" Sonic chirped, continuing to swing from the palm trees. Mario chuckled before leaping onto the next platform, feeling a rush of adrenaline in his veins. A grin spread across his face as he continued leaping across gaps in the path in front of him, that familiar sense of adventure welling up inside of him.

"Hey Mario!" Sonic yelled. "How 'bout we have a race? Whoever makes it to that abandoned fort is the winner, 'kay?"

Mario paused, looking forward at the fortress Sonic was referring to. His competitive side flared to life and he grinned up at Sonic. "Sounds good, but I hope you're ready to lose!

"Oh, I'm not losin'!" Sonic shot back. "I'll have you know that I'm the fastest thing alive! No one can beat me at a race, man or machine!"

Mario couldn't help but chuckle. Of course Sonic would still be competitive, no matter the dimension he was from. He could feel the rivalry he had with the Sonic he knew burning in his veins, and with a smirk his eyes met Sonic's. "Well, we'll just see about that! On three?"

"Sounds good!" Sonic sang. He gripped the end of his Enerbeam tighter. "One..."

"Two..." Mario chimed in.

"Three!" the two cried at the same time before they took off, Sonic effortlessly maneuvering through the trees while Mario let out happy whoops as he jumped across the ground below, his eyes trained on his opponent above him. Sonic was indeed ahead at the moment, but Mario had an ace up his sleeve. Focusing, he sped up just slightly before executing a series of well-timed jumps which ended in several midair somersaults that put him slightly farther than Sonic on their path. He heard Sonic sputter, and even though he valiantly tried to keep up Mario reached the fortress first, tagging the side of the building and chuckling as Sonic swung down in front of him, pouting.

"Ugh, I can't believe I lost!" he whined, before sighing and extending his hand to Mario. "Buuut, I hafta admit that you have some impressive jumping abilities there. Sooo... congratulations or somethin' like that, I dunno." he grumbled.

Mario clasped his hand in Sonic's before drawing away and staring up at the fortress. "I remember this place..." he murmured. "Bowser used to deploy his troops to fortresses like these. I wonder if it's abandoned?"

"Only one way to find out!" Sonic responded, making his way to the entrance. Mario did the same a moment later, and together they pushed open the large double doors, the hinges creaking after not being used for so long.

"Whoa..." Sonic gasped as he stepped inside, taking in the grey brick and the statues of Bowser lined along the walls. "Talk about boss dungeons! I feel like there should be hidden treasure somewhere in here."

"There's no lava either, so that confirms that this place is abandoned." Mario observed as he stepped into the fortress, lighting a few torches on the wall with his pyrokenisis. Sonic turned to him with a raised eyebrow.

"Lava?" he questioned.

"Usually when I go through these fortresses I need to make my way through lava," Mario explained. Upon seeing Sonic's blank face, he shrugged nonchalantly. "I've been going through it since I was twenty-one, I'm sort of used to it by now."

Sonic nodded slowly, before continuing his tour around the fortress looking at every corner in the hopes of finding something hidden in the darkness. Mario meanwhile searched through his backpack for his water bottle, and took a long swig before a question popped into his mind. "Hey Sonic?"

"Yeah?"

"You didn't seem at all fazed when you found out you were in a different dimension. Why, exactly?"

Sonic chuckled, and after a moment he wandered over to Mario and took a seat across from him. "Well, to tell ya the truth, it's not the first time it's happened to me."

"Wait, really?"

Sonic nodded. "Yeah, there was this time when a Knuckles from an alternate dimension showed up, an' he was so much different than the Knuckles we knew. An' then there was the time I went to an alternate dimension where I didn't exist! So honestly... me landin' in your dimension kinda just felt like another Saturday." he laughed to himself, before locking eyes with Mario. "Now it's my turn to ask you a question."

Mario raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "Go on."

"Why did you react so strongly to me callin' you 'Mar'?"

Mario tensed, wondering if he should come clean and tell Sonic about his dimensional counterpart. After all, this Sonic had just confirmed that he was familiar with multi-dimensional travel. But then again... he wasn't sure if he was comfortable telling this Sonic that he'd been in a relationship with another version of him. "It was... a nickname a close friend gave me once." Mario carefully worded.

"So are you guys not friends anymore or somethin'?" Sonic asked. Mario shifted uncomfortably.

"You could say that." Mario replied, feeling a sharp stab in his heart as he said that and praying that Sonic wouldn't question him further. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case.

"So what happened?" Sonic pressed.

"We... had a falling out. A clash of morals, to be more specific. We haven't spoken since." Which was true after all. It was kind of hard to talk to someone who was dead.

"That's too bad," Sonic hummed. "But I'm sure you guys will work through it. I mean, isn't that how all the stories go?"

Mario let out a small, bitter laugh. Hard to work out your issues with someone when they were dead. However, he decided to amuse this Sonic and shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, maybe."

Sonic gave a friendly grin before he stood, sighing in discontent. "So how much longer 'till we get through this watery hell?" he asked.

"We're halfway through," Mario confirmed with a laugh. He stood as well, dusting off his overalls. "So I guess we should get going."

"Yeah, the sooner we get away from water the happier I'll be!" Sonic announced, making his way outside. Mario stared after him for a moment before reaching into his pocket and taking out the guitar pick necklace, gazing at it sadly.

"You comin' Mario?" Sonic called, and Mario shoved the necklace back into his pocket before plastering a smile on his face.

"Yeah, I'll be right there!" he called, before blowing out the torches he'd lit and closing the door to the fortress behind him, leaving it as dark and silent as it was before they'd arrived.

* * *

 _ **Replies**_

 **TheGameNguyener:** Mhm, and don't worry - we will see Modern Sonic again. Just... don't expect him to be portrayed the way he has been. That's all I'm gonna say. Thank you for the review!

 **Silver1612:** Heh, well thank you! And in _Forgotten Memories,_ I decided to write the Lightning Bolt Society in as an almost rival organization to Eggman, and Sonic's mom came from that society. Thank you for the review!

 **GirlOnDarkerSide:** Yep, I had to bring back fourth wall breaking, especially since anyone who watches the show knows that there basically is no fourth wall. One of the reasons why I love it so much. Thank you for the review!

 **Pamitydesu01:** Yeah, things are starting to get a bit more interesting. Thank you for the review!

* * *

 **AN: I spent more time than I'd like to admit coming up with a name for this chapter.**

 **~Steel**


	6. On the Move

_~Chapter Six: On the Move~  
_

Out of all of the weather they had to face, Mario would readily admit to dreading the moment they had to step into the snowy wasteland. Not only had he completely blanked on packing his winter parka, it just so happened to be the middle of a bitter snowstorm at the moment, chilling both him and Sonic to the bone.

"Man, this is like steppin' two minutes outside town," Sonic complained, his arms crossed over himself in a futile attempt to keep warm. "An' once again, Blue Force 1 would have come in handy so much right now."

"Let me see if I can melt some of this." Mario mumbled, igniting his hands in flames causing the snow in the air around him to turn to water. "Stand back - I haven't done this in awhile."

Sonic watched as Mario closed his eyes, the flames in his hands growing in size. Slowly, he brought his hands together causing the flames to merge, and after a moment he opened his eyes and flicked his wrists, causing what Sonic could only call a _tornado_ of flames to erupt from his palms, melting the snow in front of them a good hundred feet. Sonic stared, mouth open in shock, before realizing Mario was hunched over panting heavily.

"I mean - it's not much..." Mario mumbled. "But at least... we have... a bit of a path..."

"Hey man, take it easy." Sonic expressed in concern, placing a hand on Mario's shoulder.

"I-I'm fine," Mario weakly reassured. "Just... it takes up a lot of energy, that's all."

"Here." Sonic shrugged out of his backpack and dug out his thermos. "Drink somethin' - that'll make you feel better."

"I-I have my own..." Mario mumbled, but it fell on deaf ears as Sonic unscrewed the lid and poured water into it, handing it off to Mario. Mario accepted the cup and brought it to his lips, deeply drinking before handing it back to Sonic. " _G-Grazie..."_

"Eh, don't mention it," Sonic shrugged. "Feelin' a bit better now?"

"A bit." Mario confirmed, standing upright and shrugging out of his own backpack. "You know, we could probably wrap our sleeping bags around us and that could..." he paused to take a few deep breaths. "...That could probably keep us warm..."

"Yeah, that sounds like a good plan." Sonic agreed, digging his sleeping bag out of his backpack. He snickered as he wrapped it around himself. "I feel like a burrito. But not the ones from that shady stand that shows up every summer, the ones from Meh Burger. Which really isn't a great comparison as it's the equivalent of getting hit by a car versus falling out of an airplane with no parachute." Sonic paused for a moment. "Actually, that would be quite a thrill..." he mumbled to himself before shaking his head and realizing Mario was staring at him. "Anyway, we good to go?"

"Are you done?" Mario questioned with a chuckle. Sonic sighed in exasperation and rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, I'm done. So we good to go?" he repeated.

Mario nodded and tightened his hold around the sleeping bag wrapped around himself. " _Sì_ , we can start moving again."

By the time the duo reached the point where Mario's flames had failed to reach, the snowstorm had stopped and Mario breathed a sigh of relief.

"That should make things a little easier for us," he pointed out. "I wonder if we can find another abandoned fort we can rest in."

"Considerin' how nice the writer has been to us so far, I'm assumin' we'll come across one in a few paragraphs or so." Sonic guessed. Mario only blinked and slowly nodded his head. What was it with Sonic - any Sonic - going on about writers and people reading what was happening? This wasn't a story - this was real life!

Snow and ice crunched beneath their feet as they trudged through the winter wonderland. Eventually though Mario spied something off in the distance and couldn't help but chuckle a bit. "Well, I'll be darned..."

Sure enough, they'd come across another abandoned fortress and Sonic turned to Mario with a smug grin.

"An' what did I tell ya? Seriously, it's like the writer ran out of ideas or somethin so she'll have us bunk here for the night."

Once again the two pushed open the door of the fortress, and Mario immediately went to light some of the torches on the walls. "That should help make it a bit warmer..." he mumbled. "And I'm going to go a little deeper into the fortress to see if there's anything we could use to start a fire."

"But I wanna go on an adventure too!" Sonic whined. "You can't have _all_ the fun, y'know!"

Mario felt obliged to point out all the dangerous traps that could still be active, before he held his tongue. This was _Sonic_ he was talking to. And even if he wasn't a total carbon copy of his counterpart... he was still a hero in his own regard. Besides, from what he'd heard so far, this Sonic could take care of himself just fine as well. Smiling, Mario tilted his head towards the unknown. "Alright; if you want to do some exploring, I can't stop you."

"Damn straight you can't," Sonic grinned, flicking his thumb across his nose. "Adventurin' is what I live for! An', y'know, savin' people an' eatin' chili dogs, but the adventure thing is pretty important."

' _Don't I know it.'_ Mario thought. He remembered how the Sonic he knew had always dragged him off towards the unknown grounds of the Smash realm, places they really weren't supposed to go after the whole Subspace incident. Surprisingly they'd never got caught, and Mario had to admit that some of the landscapes looked beautiful and why Sonic was so interested in exploring those abandoned places. And then of course there was the tour of Station Square Sonic had given him... complete with all the shortcuts and alleyways and a detailed description of all the shops in the area.

Something he'd probably never experience again with anyone else...

"Hellooo? Mario?" Sonic waved a hand over Mario's face. "You alive in there?"

"Huh?" Mario glanced around, snapping out of his thoughts. Sonic crossed his arms and gave Mario a look.

"You spaced out. Everythin' alright in that red capped head of yours?"

 _'Not really.'_ " _Sì_ , everything's fine. I just got lost in thought, that's all." Mario gave Sonic a reassuring grin that he could tell he didn't buy and clapped his hands together. "So let's go see if we can find something to start a fire with!"

/~/

"Hey Mario?" Sonic called from deeper in the fortress. They'd gone quite far in their search for materials, and had gone down different paths when they came to a crossroads.

"Yeah Sonic?"

"You, uh, sure this place is abandoned?"

Mario did a quick check around the room he was in before he frowned and headed down the corridor Sonic had gone down. "It should be. Why?"

He got his answer when he stepped into the room and found Sonic surrounded by Dry Bones. "Oh, no reason," Sonic casually stated as he spindashed through a Dry Bones, the skeletal turtle falling to the ground in several pieces. "Just room of the livin' dead in here, that's all."

"What the-?" Mario breathed as he began to help Sonic clear out the room. As soon as all the Dry Bones had been defeated he grabbed Sonic's arm. "We have to leave," Mario ordered in a panic. "They'll come back to life in a few seconds."

"What do you mean they'll come back to life?" Sonic cried out in alarm. "What kind of enemies are these?"

"Ones that Bowser usually deploys," Mario mumbled. "Kamek must have tipped Bowser off about you after all. So if that's the case..."

Sonic watched as Mario's eyes widened with horror. "Oh no..." he mumbled.

"Mario, what is it?" Sonic asked anxiously. Mario's eyes met Sonic's in alarm.

"If Bowser has troops here, that means he knew that we'd come this way, and also why we're out here. And if that's the case... Professor E. Gadd might be in danger."

* * *

 _ **Replies**_

 **TheGameNguyener:** Yeah, we'll just have to see how the entire 'Mario knows another Sonic' thing will play out. Thank you for the review! **  
**

 **Pamitydesu01:** Oh, it's most certainly the calm before the storm. We'll just have to see how the story goes! Thank you for the review!

 **GirlOnDarkerSide:** Yay, I'm glad someone realized it was a reference to an episode! Thank you for the review!

* * *

 **AN: I'm glad the pun went over well with everyone.  
**

 **~Steel**


	7. Ghosts from your Past

_~Chapter Seven: Ghosts from your Past~  
_

With the knowledge that the one person who could send Sonic back to his dimension might be in danger, Mario and Sonic had no time to stop for the night. They kept up their pace, only stopping for quick breaks along the way.

"Evershade Valley isn't too far away," Mario panted as they made their way through a forest filled with dead, twisted trees and a perpetually overcast sky. "Hopefully we won't be too late."

Sonic snorted, a wide grin on his face. "I'm Sonic the Hedgehog. I'm _never_ late."

 _'Tell that to your counterpart,'_ Mario thought as he recalled how Sonic always showed up just in the nick of time to save the day, like in the battle against Tabuu. Then again, since Sonic _was_ the fastest thing alive, was it really showing up late? Food for thought...

Mario veered off of the path by a mansion with a purple roof, and Sonic could have sworn he heard chortling coming from within the walls as they passed by. The air grew more thick with fog every step they took, to the point where they could barely see a couple feet in front of them. Mario held his palm in front of him and summoned a small flame, but even that was eventually swallowed by the mist.

"So what do we do now?" Sonic questioned. "Everythin' looks the same an' it's gettin' kinda hard to breathe..."

"Give me a minute..." Mario mumbled, wracking his brain on what they could do in this situation. Sonic tapped his foot on the ground impatiently, crossing his arms.

"Just follow my lead." Mario instructed, igniting the flame in his palm once again. While Sonic looked skeptical at first, he eventually sighed and followed behind Mario as he slowly maneuvered his way through the fog, his eyes trained on what was directly in front of them. And while Sonic bumped into Mario every time he paused, eventually the duo made their way out of the fog and down a cobblestone path which led to a gate that to Sonic looked like it came directly out of a horror film. The cloudy sky did nothing to help the gloomy atmosphere. Sonic half expected lightning bolts to crack across the sky.

"We're here," Mario broke the silence. "Evershade Valley. Professor E. Gadd's bunker shouldn't be too far away."

Sonic glanced at his surroundings as he followed Mario, taking in the gothic-styled houses that jutted from the ground like tombstones. Eyes peeked from the blinds on the windows as Mario and Sonic walked by, causing Sonic to quirk an eyeridge.

"Hey Mario? What's up with this place?"

"This valley is home to many species of ghosts," Mario explained. "Everything from Greenies to Hiders to Slammers. But I wouldn't worry about them, they're basically harmless since the Dark Moon was fixed thanks to Luigi."

Sonic nodded, and continued to follow Mario as he once again drifted from the main path down a dirt one, leading down to a small metal bunker. Mario picked up the pace as he approached, and flung the door open once he reached it.

"Professor E. Gadd!" Mario cried out. "Are you oka-"

He stopped himself short as the Professor was in the middle of eating a bowl of noodles, and both parties just stared at each other for a moment before Sonic jogged in, looking at the situation before eyeing Mario in annoyance.

"Yep, he's _definitely_ in danger." Sonic drawled sarcastically, glaring at Mario who gave him a sheepish smile in return.

"Ah, Mario," E. Gadd greeted, standing and wandering over to him. "I've been expecting you. Princess Peach informed me of the situation with your friend here." he turned his head towards Sonic. "But hopefully we'll be able to send your friend home in a jiffy!"

"Aw, great!" Sonic exclaimed happily, already dreaming about playing video games with Tails and hanging out with Amy in a totally platonic way, no romance to be implied here folks!

"However..." E. Gadd added, and Sonic snapped out of his daydreams to glance down at the Professor who was gazing at a contraption looking troubled. "A major component was stolen from my transporter two nights ago. Without it, I'm afraid it's nothing more than an elaborate storage closet."

 _'I knew it,'_ Mario thought as he exchanged a glance with Sonic. _'I just knew that Bowser wouldn't let us do this the easy way.'_ "Professor E. Gadd?" Mario spoke up. "I think I have an idea of who stole the part from your machine."

"Oh, I know it was Bowser's doing," E. Gadd replied. "My sensors picked up readings from Magikoopa magic. And since that's the case, I can have the Pixelator send you over to Bowser's Castle in a jiffy! But before you go, allow me to restock your supplies for your journey. It's the least I can do since I know you boys will have a tough battle ahead of you, especially for Sonic here."

"Hey!" Sonic cried out. "I'll have you know I'm a hero in my own right, and can totally take on this 'Bowser' guy!"

E. Gadd chuckled. "Feisty," he murmured. "Just like the other one." he added in a lower voice that neither Mario nor Sonic picked up on. Shaking his head he smiled at Mario and Sonic. "Now let's get you boys something to eat!"

/~/

"Mario."

Mario turned towards E. Gadd who was holding his backpack out to him, filled to the brim with everything they needed for the second leg of their journey. Mario accepted the backpack from the Professor. _"Grazie."_

"It's no problem," E. Gadd replied with a chuckle, before glancing out a window and making sure Sonic was still distracted by a Polterpup that had wandered by. "So he has no knowledge of his counterpart?"

"No." Mario confirmed. E. Gadd hummed.

"Are you ever going to tell him?"

Mario paused, contemplating the answer. "I..."

"I think you should tell him," E. Gadd suggested. "He deserves to know there's another one of him out there. Or rather, was." he added, frowning as he recalled the news he'd received on that fateful day three months ago. Mario flinched before he nodded.

"I know I should," he began. "But it never seems like the right time to bring it up. And how am I supposed to address that not only is there another of him, but that I was involved with said other?"

E. Gadd gave Mario a reassuring smile. "You'll figure it out," he stated with confidence. "Just like you and your brother always do at the end of the day."

Mario couldn't help but chuckle. _"Grazie,_ Professor E. Gadd."

"Don't mention it, sonny! Remember - I'm always here whenever you need to talk about anything. Never hesitate to drop in anytime. The same goes for your brother as well."

The corner of Mario's mouth lifted into a smile. "I'll keep that in mind, Professor. And I'll make sure to let Weeg know as well."

"That sounds like a good plan," E. Gadd grinned, before his eyes fell to Sonic again. "You go get him while I fire up the Pixelator."

Mario nodded and opened the door of the bunker, where Sonic was still playing with the Polterpup, using his Enerbeam as a rope for the dog. Mario cleared his throat and both Sonic and the Polterpup glanced up at him.

"Time to go?" Sonic guessed.

"Time to go," Mario confirmed. He smiled down at the Polterpup and scratched it's head. "I see you made a friend though."

"I did!" Sonic announced proudly. "An' it's a much better dog than the robot one Sticks had for a while there. That thing was _disgusting,_ even more so when we found out it was Eggman's creation."

"My brother owns a Polterpup," Mario pointed out. "If you'd told me he'd own a ghost dog back when we first made it to the Mushroom Kingdom, I would have laughed. He was so afraid of ghosts, but ever since defeating King Boo once again he's become quite fond of them since like I said before, they aren't that scary when they aren't under the influence of the shattered Dark Moon."

"Man, you guys never catch a break, do ya?" Sonic asked as he gave the Polterpup one last pat on the head before standing. The Polterpup barked once before disappearing back into the Valley.

"It's never a dull moment in the Mushroom Kingdom," Mario laughed. "In fact, I've had serious talks with Peach over whether that should be it's slogan or not."

Sonic laughed as he and Mario reentered the bunker, a strange whirring sound coming from a machine in the corner.

"Alright, the Pixelator is up and running!" E. Gadd chirped. "Now, do you boys have everything you need?"

"I have my backpack," Mario turned to look at Sonic. "What about you?"

"I've got mine." Sonic confirmed. E. Gadd nodded.

"Alright then. Now, I'll give you this so I can bring you back after you complete your task." E. Gadd handed Mario an object that looked like a brick-like game console. "Just press the A button and then the Start button when you want to head back."

"Got it." Mario said.

"I wish you boys luck." was the last thing E. Gadd said to them before he threw the lever, a strange, tingling sensation going through both of them before they were separated and sucked into the vacuum of cyberspace towards their destination.

* * *

 _ **Replies**_

 **TheGameNguyener:** Yep, even though Boom!Sonic looks done half the time, he does still care about his friends. Thank you for the review!

 **Pamitydesu01:** Oh, both Sonic's are completely aware that Mario doesn't understand the fourth wall. I'd say that Boom!Sonic is a bit more confused about it though thanks to the nature of the world he came from. Thank you for the review!


	8. The Truth is Painful

_~Chapter Eight: The Truth is Painful~  
_

The feeling of being pulled apart then reconstructed was a bizarre sensation that Mario would never get used to no matter how much he went through it. He could tell Sonic wasn't used to it either as he checked himself over when they were on solid land again, as if to make sure every piece of him was still intact. After he confirmed that yes, everything was still in place, his eyes met Mario's.

"That was... _odd."_ Sonic carefully worded, before he glanced around at where they were. "So this is Bowser's Castle, huh?"

"It sure is." Mario murmured. "Or one of them, at least." he added quietly, but still loud enough that Sonic heard him.

"One of them?" Sonic turned to Mario with a quirked eyeridge. "You mean he has more?"

"He has an entire _kingdom."_ Mario explained. Sonic's eyes widened.

"Geez, an' I thought Egghead havin' an island was bad. But a kingdom?"

"Although to be fair, it was quite beautiful," Mario remembered. "It was a Japanese-styled fortress, and there was even a tea garden where the Crazy Cap store was."

"This place sure doesn't look beautiful," Sonic observed, squinting through the ash that hung in the air at the cold, stone fortress surrounded by a moat of lava. "Looks more like the depths of Hell."

Mario hummed in agreement, a faraway look in his eyes as he stared at the castle where Bowser resided within. _'Bowser's going to say something about Sonic, I just know it.'_

Sonic frowned and clapped his hands in front of Mario's face. "Hey, you alright there?"

Mario blinked, snapping back into reality. "Yeah, I'm fine..." he murmured. He shook his head of his thoughts and furrowed his brow, clenching his fists. "Now let's go get that part back!"

/~/

The closer the duo made it to the castle, the warmer and denser the air became. Sonic coughed as he inhaled a lungful of smoke, before once again covering his nose and mouth with his neckerchief.

"So what's our move here?" he asked Mario. "I mean, do we just waltz on in through the main doors or try an' find another way in?"

"I usually use the main doors." Mario admitted, causing Sonic to quirk an eyeridge in disbelief.

"Seriously? 'Cause dude, that's kinda awesome!" He brightly grinned, spindashing the doorway and causing the doors to fly open, startling the Koopa Paratroopa's on the inside. The enemy's eyes narrowed and they divebombed Mario and Sonic who quickly counterattacked with their fireballs and spindash accordingly. Mario stared down at the defeated enemies with pity, wishing that things could be a little different. Sonic meanwhile spindashed through enemies like it was no issue at all, clearly having a single goal in mind. Mario wondered if it was because a majority of the enemies Sonic was used to were robots; it would make it hard to feel pity for something that didn't have emotions of their own.

Mario shook his head to clear away his thoughts before starting to run to catch up with Sonic who was staring down a Hammer Bro with fierce intensity.

"Hammers, huh? Too bad Ames isn't here - she'd show you what a real hammer looks like!"

The Hammer Bro began to throw his hammers in the usual arc, which Sonic swiftly avoided. Mario got underneath the block the Hammer Bro was standing on and hit it, the force of the vibration causing the Hammer Bro to fall off, stunned.

"Hah! Take that you overgrown turtle... thing!" Sonic taunted before running on ahead, coming across several pits of lava. Pulling out his Enerbeam with a bit of flourish he hooked it onto a chandelier hanging from the ceiling and began to leap from chandelier to chandelier while Mario hopped from pit to pit, making sure to avoid the lava bubbles that rose from the fiery sea every few seconds.

Eventually the duo made it to a small flagpole which Mario tagged. "We're at the halfway point," he observed. "And it looks like we're going up from here."

"A little altitude's never bothered me!" Sonic exclaimed as both he and Mario stepped onto a circular platform, the entire thing lurching for a moment before starting to move upwards.

"Ah, finally, a break!" Sonic exclaimed, before a Spiny dropped down onto the platform with them. Mario eyed Sonic in annoyance as he tossed a fireball at it.

"You just had to say it, didn't you?" he questioned as more Spinies began to drop down. Sonic just shrugged.

"Tails does it to me all the time. I wanted to be the one causin' extra trouble for once."

Mario growled in annoyance and tossed a few more fireballs. "Help me please!" he cried, and Sonic nodded before lashing his Enerbeam at the enemies, the electric rope tangling around one of the Spinies. Flicking his wrist Sonic used the trapped Spiny at the end of his Enerbeam to his advantage, slamming it into other enemies as he swung his Enerbeam around the platform. Mario raised his eyebrows, impressed.

"An' that's how we do it in Hedgehog Village!" Sonic stated, giving Mario a smirk. "So tell me, what's Bowser's main method of attack?"

"Fireballs," Mario replied. "And he'll jump up and try to crush you, or swing his tail at you."

"So he actually fights one on one?" Sonic questioned. "Man, I'm used to Egghead sending out his minions to do his dirty work for him. So this should be a fun challenge!"

Mario weakly smiled, shrugging off his backpack and digging around for some food. "We may as well eat something so our energy levels are up when we fight him."

"Yeah, I guess it would be wise to have a bite." Sonic agreed, taking off his own backpack and digging out a ham and cheese sandwich. The two ate in silence as the platform went higher and higher, before it finally stopped in front of a set of double doors. Mario took a deep breath, looking Sonic in the eye.

"You ready?"

"I'm always ready for a challenge."

With that they pushed the doors open, and headed inside to confront Bowser.

/~/

"Mario!" Bowser roared as the heroes stepped inside, the door slamming shut behind him. "I've been expecting you."

"Cut the chatter, Bowser!" Mario snarled. "You know why I'm here, so just hand the part over and we won't be forced to fight you."

Bowser hummed, tapping his chin thoughtfully. "Let me think... no!" he snapped, rising from his elaborate throne and breathing a stream of fire in the air above him. "If you want the transporter part, you'll have to fight me for it!" his gaze fell to Sonic, and he snickered. "Though I'm surprised you want to send him back at all, considering how much he looks like your _precious_ ex-boyfriend!"

Mario's blood ran cold and his mouth went dry. Bowser laughed at Mario's expression and turned to Sonic who was looking between him and Mario in confusion. "That's right, plumber-boy over here was swapping saliva with an alternate version of you! In fact, I'm surprised he hasn't tried anything with you yet, considering just how _desperate_ he's been since they broke up!"

Sonic glared at Bowser and turned his eyes towards Mario who had tears forming in the corners of his eyes. _'So it must be true...'_ he concluded. Still, he couldn't fight Bowser alone, and snapped his fingers in front of Mario's face. "Dude, snap out of it, I need help here!"

Mario blinked, seemingly remembering where he was, and glared at Bowser. His whole body trembled in anger, and he ignited his hands in flames. "Right..." he muttered.

"So... you're still going to fight after all." Bowser snorted. "Fine. I'll show you just how strong the King of the Koopa's really is!"

Bowser charged at Mario who dodged out of the way and shot a couple of fireballs at Bowser who simply shrugged them off as if they were nothing but scraps of paper. Sonic meanwhile used his Enerbeam to latch onto a chandelier and swing around the room, landing a kick to Bowser's jaw.

Bowser roared and glared at Sonic, wrapping his giant claw around Sonic's torso and snatching him from his perch. Sonic struggled in Bowser's grasp, a surge of panic flaring up inside him as he'd never experienced this in a battle before. Usually Eggman would throw a fit and fly away in his Eggmobile after a single attack. Never once had he actually been in significant danger. But he could feel his insides being crushed, making it difficult to breathe...

An inferno of flames hit Bowser in the side, his grip on Sonic loosening and Sonic lashing his Enerbeam out at Bowser's throne so he could safely land on the ground. His gaze fell to Mario who was glaring at Bowser with pure rage in his eyes, hunched over thanks to using so much energy. "Thank you." he whispered, even though he knew Mario was too worked up to hear it at the moment.

"Aw, saving your _boyfriend_ are you?" Bowser taunted. "Hoping you'll get some sort of _reward_ after all this is over?"

 _"Shut up!"_ Mario screamed, finding his second wind and dashing towards Bowser as fast as he could, his hands surrounded in angry crimson flames. Bowser didn't seem fazed at all as he raised his claw, waiting for the moment to strike and rake his pointed talons through his enemy.

But that never happened. Instead, Bowser felt something latch onto his tail, and realized in alarm that he hadn't been focusing on what Sonic was doing. Turning he found Sonic's Enerbeam hooked around his tail, the hedgehog giving him a cocky smirk as he held the other end of the electric rope.

"You little-" Bowser snarled, before being cut off by a flaming punch from Mario, which gave Sonic the opportunity to start swinging Bowser around by the tail, knocking him into columns and statues around the room. He continued swinging until he eventually let go, sending Bowser flying into an adjacent wall, the stone cracking at the contact before Bowser slid to the floor, on the brink of unconsciousness.

"Mario, now!" Sonic called, and Mario - using the last of his energy reserves - dashed forward and punched Bowser in the jaw as hard as he could, before both he and Bowser fell unconscious a moment later.

/~/

Mario woke to someone pouring water on his face. He spluttered and coughed as some water had gone into his nose and down his throat, and opened his eyes to find Sonic above him holding his water bottle.

"Rise an' shine, we gotta bail!" Sonic exclaimed, standing and holding out his hand for Mario to take. Mario stared at it for a moment before clasping his hand in Sonic's, letting himself be pulled up.

"Did you get the part?" Mario mumbled weakly. Sonic nodded and pointed to his backpack.

"Yeah, it was in a treasure chest that had a conspicuous light shinin' down onto it, an' when I opened it it was sparklin' like somethin' important would do."

"Great." Mario mumbled, digging into his own backpack for the device E. Gadd had given him. Pressing the A and Start buttons he turned to Sonic, guilt in his eyes. "Sonic..."

"I know," Sonic replied. "We'll talk when we get back to the bunker, 'kay?"

Mario nodded as the machine in his hand sparked, and a moment later the two of them were once again pixelated and heading towards the safety of Professor E. Gadd's bunker.

* * *

 _ **Replies**_

 **Pamitydesu01:** Mario may act like he's cool around Boom!Sonic, but in actuality he's so torn up about it. He's just good at hiding it. And yeah, I don't think I'd be able to do it either. Thank you for the review! **  
**

 **TheGameNguyener:** I like thinking of Professor E. Gadd as a father-like figure to Mario and Luigi. And you were right, things did get serious this chapter! Thank you for the review!

* * *

 **AN: Two chapters left of this story. And for those of you who care, I put _Moments_ on hiatus. I needed a bit of a break from it.**

 **~Steel**


	9. Off Your Chest

_~Chapter Nine: Off Your Chest~  
_

"Ah good, you boys have come back safely," E. Gadd greeted when Mario and Sonic had returned to the bunker. "I trust your mission went well?"

"Sure did, Prof!" Sonic exclaimed, tossing the machine part in his hands. He placed it on the table next to E. Gadd. "Bowser was no match for the two of us!"

"I'm glad to hear it," E. Gadd hummed. "It will take a while for me to reinstall the part, so if you boys could just go wait outside..."

Mario didn't miss the pointed gaze E. Gadd gave him, as if to say, 'Now's your chance, go talk to him'. And even though he'd been putting it off... Mario knew he had no choice now. Sonic knew about his counterpart thanks to Bowser, and it was time to have the discussion. "Of course, Professor E. Gadd. Come on Sonic."

Sonic followed Mario outside the bunker, and gazed at him with a curious expression as Mario shut the door and motioned Sonic to a small patch of grass.

"Sooo... what Bowser was sayin' was...?" Sonic began.

"True," Mario sighed. "It's all true, except for the part where he implied I had romantic feelings for you. Indeed you remind me of the Sonic I knew, but at the same time there are enough differences to keep you two apart in my mind."

"Hm," Sonic hummed, folding his arms and pondering on what he should ask next. "So, what's this alternate me like? Is he as fast as me? As cool? Got my outstandin' street cred?"

"He's a hero," Mario explained. "Like you, he has an enemy in Dr. Eggman, though the one in his world seems much more threatening than the one in yours. You mentioned how your Eggman is like a Saturday morning cartoon villain? This Eggman is hell-bent on the destruction of the world, has blown up half the moon, and has attempted mind control on multiple occasions."

"Mind control, huh?" Sonic asked. "Now, to be clear, mind control as in enslaving everyone or mind control as in affecting the ladies so it'll sell more boy band merch?"

"The former," Mario clarified. "I've witnessed firsthand how dangerous he can be. While I was visiting that world a robot he was piloting managed to break my arm, and he..." Mario went quiet and clenched his hand into a fist. Sonic quirked an eyeridge in interest.

"'An' he' what?" he questioned, and Mario took a deep breath in.

"He... he managed to..."

"Dude, stop with the dramatic pauses and just say it!" Sonic snapped, tapping his foot impatiently.

"He killed your counterpart." Mario blurted, causing Sonic to reel in shock and stare at Mario with wide eyes.

"Killed? As in, alternate me is... dead? How... why... what!?" he cried, holding his head as he tried to comprehend what he'd just been told.

"Now you know why I was hesitant," Mario muttered. "From what I was able to gather, Eggman had some sort of new sidekick with him. They engaged Sonic in a battle and according to Tails... he didn't survive."

"Tails?!" Sonic cried. "Tails exists in that universe too? He saw alternate me die? What happened to him, is he okay?"

"I don't know," Mario admitted. "We haven't heard from them since receiving that news three months ago."

Sonic sat down on the ground, overwhelmed. "I'll, uh... make sure to keep a closer eye on Eggman from now on," he murmured blankly. "Maybe Sticks was onto somethin' with her crazy ramblings." he glanced up at Mario hesitantly. "Is there... anythin' else I should know?"

 _'That Dr. Eggman was the father of the Sonic I knew is a pretty big one.'_ "No." Mario decided, figuring it was best to keep that one a secret. No need to mentally scar Sonic more than he already had been.

"Okay." Sonic nodded to himself, before motioning for Mario to join him on the ground. After Mario did, Sonic looked right into his eyes. "So look, I'm not one that likes talkin' 'bout relationships an' things like that. But since it's another me we're talkin' 'bout, I think I can make an exception. So, let's start at the beginnin'. How did you two meet?"

"We were rivals," Mario explained. "Whenever one of us did something heroic, it was always compared to whatever the other one was doing. I think the rivalry stemmed from us just being so sick of hearing the others name after a while. It got tiring."

Sonic nodded, and Mario continued, "Despite our rivalry, we never met face-to-face until the third Super Smash Brothers tournament - a tournament where the best fighters in all the dimensions live together in a giant mansion and battle for sport."

"Wait, a giant mansion?" Sonic interrupted. "How many of you are there?"

"Last tournament there was over sixty of us." Mario said, and Sonic couldn't help but snort.

"Man, it sounds like some bad reality TV show." he mused.

"My friend Samus compares it to a soap opera, and sometimes it feels like one," Mario admitted. "But anyway, I didn't want to spend that tournament fighting with Sonic, so we ended up successfully burying the hatchet after a long night of talking. We ended up attending the Olympics together on multiple occasions, and became close friends. We ended up trusting each other so much that we knew things about each other that no one else did."

"So when did you two... become an item?" Sonic questioned.

"Sonic developed a crush on me first. He harbored it for a while too, and I honestly had no idea. And as for me... I felt a romantic spark towards him after we slept together in a blanket fort after I comforted him after an incident that happened in his world."

Sonic's head snapped up at that statement. "Slept together?" he asked. "So like, you two..."

"No, no!" Mario quickly placed his hands up in defense. "Not in that way! As in we literally fell asleep next to each other in a blanket fort, that's all!"

"Oh." Sonic got a curious look on his face. "So uh, not to pry, but after you got together did you two ever...?"

Mario's face burned and he avoided eye contact, giving Sonic the answer he needed. "Okay then," he coughed. "Continue."

Mario - still blushing - cleared his throat. "I didn't exactly realize I had a crush on him," he explained. "But then there was a party in the mansion, and I got a bit drunk. Sonic took me back to his room because I wouldn't tell him where my key was, and the next morning after a brief discussion he kissed me."

"Yeah, I guess that kinda sounds like somethin' I'd do." Sonic admitted. "Actin' by impulse is kinda what I'm known for."

"Exactly," Mario agreed. "Naturally I was shocked, and didn't know what to do... but after a discussion we decided to give it a shot. And sure, there was skepticism from some of the other residents since he was eighteen and I was twenty-six-"

"Wait," Sonic interrupted. "But you're twenty-six now."

"And?" Mario questioned.

"So I'm twenty-two! Why was alternate dimension me younger than me?"

"Because time doesn't flow at the Smash Mansion," Mario explained. "Sonic lost three years being there. If he hadn't lost those three years, he'd be the same age as you right now."

"So _that's_ why you thought I was nineteen!" Sonic realized. "So how old would that make you then, twenty-nine?"

"Around twenty-eight, actually," Mario corrected. "Time flows at half speed in my world compared to Sonic's. I've been through more tournaments than him, but overall I've only lost around a year and ten months."

"Interestin'..." Sonic mused. "So, if you two were so close... what happened for the two of you to break up?"

"A clash of morals," Mario murmured cryptically. "Something happened that nearly drove him to kill someone else and... we had a fight. In the end he broke up with me, just three days after his nineteenth birthday." He dug into his overalls pocket and produced the guitar pick necklace. "I had got him this for his birthday... he tossed it back at me when we broke up. And it wasn't long after that when we learned that he'd died."

"Dude..." Sonic breathed, absorbing all the information that had been dumped on him. "That's rough. Is that why... is that why you had such a strong reaction to me calling you 'Mar'? Was that his nickname for you or somethin'?"

"It was." Mario confirmed with a sad smile. He shoved the necklace back into his pocket and stared down at the ground. "I really miss him," he quietly whispered. "I'd always hoped that we could reconcile and start fresh. Even if we could just be friends again. But that's not going to happen now."

"I guess it's kinda hard for you to see me then, huh?" Sonic asked. "Since I remind you so much of him."

 _"Sì."_ Mario confirmed. "But again, there are enough differences between the two of you. For instance, he didn't wear a neckerchief, he had no sports tape, he smoothed down his quills and he shaved his arms. He also had a red hoop earring in his left ear."

"Tan arms?" Sonic repeated in disbelief. "Ugh, why? I would _never_ shave my arms, not in a million years! The earring thing is pretty sweet though, I may look into gettin' one of those."

Mario chuckled a bit before he went back to frowning. Sonic tilted his head and took a deep breath. "So... what are you gonna do now?"

"I know I have to move on," Mario mumbled. "We promised each other that if one of us died we wouldn't mourn for the other and find someone else who made us happy... but I'm having a hard time keeping that promise."

Sonic could only nod, not knowing what to say. "Well, has talkin' with me - another Sonic - helped in any sort of way?"

Mario blinked, really thinking about that question. "I guess it sort of has..." he admitted. "I do admit, I feel less burdened now that it's finally off my chest. And I just want you to know that I never intended to keep this secret from you either, it just never seemed like the right time to reveal something like that."

"Eh, I probably would've been able to handle it," Sonic pointed out. "As I said before, I'm familiar with dimensional travel. There was the silly hat Knux dimension, an' the one that Steve came from, an' that one where Eggman looks like he came right out of the trends of the mid 2000's. But... I get why you were a bit hesitant. I mean, your relationship with that Sonic was personal. But don't worry, we're still cool." he extended his hand for Mario to shake, and warmly smiling Mario clasped his hand in Sonic's.

"Friends?" Mario asked hopefully.

"Of course we're still friends!" Sonic declared with a bit of a smile. A moment later the door to the bunker opened and E. Gadd stepped out, glancing at Mario and Sonic.

"The transporter is up and running again!" E. Gadd stated. "Are you boys done discussing everything you need to out here?"

Mario and Sonic gave each other a look, and after a moment Mario nodded.

 _"Sì_ , Professor E. Gadd. We're ready to send Sonic back home."

* * *

 _ **Replies**_

 **TheGameNguyener:** Yeah, Bowser didn't help in that situation in the slightest. But of course things are fine between Mario and Sonic. Sonic gets it. Thank you for the review! **  
**

 **Silver1612:** Hey, don't worry about not reviewing! It's cool. Thank you for the review! **  
**

 **Pamitydesu01:** Yeah, poor Mario. He's been through so much in this story and the last. Hopefully he'll get a break soon. Thank you for the review!


	10. Bittersweet

**_Replies_**

 **TheGameNguyener:** Well, read on to find out! Thank you for the review! **  
**

 **Silver1612:** Yeah, their friendship was pretty fun to write. A shame they have to say goodbye... thank you for the review!

 **Pamitydesu01:** I guess we'll see what happens with Mario! Thank you for the review!

* * *

 _~Chapter Ten: Bittersweet~  
_

"So I'll just need something from your dimension to send you back. Do you have anything you can spare?" E. Gadd asked Sonic with a tilt of his head.

"Would some sports tape work?" Sonic questioned, digging the roll out of his quills and ripping off a piece. E. Gadd nodded.

"Indeed it will, as long as it was brought from your dimension. Did you have it with you when you found your way here?"

"I sure did!" Sonic exclaimed proudly. "I never go anywhere without a little extra on me."

"Perfect, perfect," E. Gadd mumbled, taking the strip of sports tape and placing it below what looked like a mini laser. "Now, all I do is pull this lever here and a beam of light will shoot at the sports tape, analyzing which dimension you came from. Then all I need to do is find something to send you through. I'm assuming something like that exists in your world, considering what the Tails from the other dimension is capable of."

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure Tails has somethin' in his workshop to that extent. Worse case scenario I end up at Eggman's, an' I mean, it's not like I _haven't_ seen him in his pajamas before."

"Why have you seen Eggman in his pajamas?" Mario curiously asked. Sonic put his hand up.

"Dude, I _really_ don't wanna talk about it." he groaned.

"Here it is!" E. Gadd interrupted. "Hedgehog Village on Bygone Island, correct?"

"If we're mixin' both the game canon and show canon together, I guess so!" Sonic exclaimed. He turned to Mario, an almost bittersweet smile on his face. "So, I guess it's time for me to go."

"Yeah..." Mario murmured. He held his hand out for Sonic to shake. "Take care Sonic. I'm glad I met you."

Sonic snickered, clasping his hand in Mario's. "I'm glad I met ya too. An' hey, even though this was more than likely a one-off thing, at least we'll always have our memories of each other!"

"I guess we will," Mario mused. He opened his mouth to say something else before something soft pressed against his cheek for the briefest of seconds.

It took him a moment to realize Sonic had kissed him. He blinked to find Sonic already next to the machine, his arms folded and a smirk on his muzzle.

"Why...?" Mario questioned in confusion. Sonic shrugged as E. Gadd pulled the lever, the machine whirring to life.

"See ya around, Mario! Thanks for everythin'!" he called as a bright light enveloped him, and he gave one last wave before he was gone, leaving Mario to absentmindedly rub the spot on his cheek where Sonic's lips had made contact.

/~/

"I'm telling you guys, I _know_ that I can bring Sonic back to us! I just... haven't figured out how yet."

"I say we take it as a sign," Sticks grumbled from the corner of the workshop. "This is clearly the start of an alien invasion! They interfered with Tails' machine and took Sonic to their spaceship in the sky, where they'll make him reveal information about us and the village! And then when you least expect it... BOOM! We'll all be next!"

"Even by our standards, that sounds pretty farfetched," Amy pointed out. "I'm sure there's a logical, reasonable explanation for what happened."

"I just hope Sonic makes it back soon," Knuckles sighed. "Team Knuckles just isn't the same without Sonic as it's leader."

"I just don't understand what happened," Tails mumbled. "And before you say anything Sticks, no, aliens isn't the answer!"

"If aliens aren't the answer, why is that machine in the corner sparking like there's some sort of alien interference?" Sticks pointed out in a dry tone. Tails whirled around, his eyes bugging.

"My transporter!" he cried, rushing over and inspecting the machine. "Eggman must've hacked into it."

"Maybe it's Sonic coming from a different dimension?" Knuckles suggested, which earned him a stern look from Amy.

"I'd be more inclined to believe Sticks' alien theory than that. I mean, how could Sonic _possibly-"_

"Hey guys!" Sonic exclaimed, stepping out of the transporter causing Sticks to shriek and get into a defensive pose, boomerang at ready. "Didja miss me?"

"It's an alien!" Sticks shrieked, while Sonic simply rolled his eyes and ruffled Tails' bangs.

"Hey buddy," Sonic chuckled. "I missed you guys!"

"Sonic!" Knuckles grinned, giving Sonic a high five. "Good to have you back! It's been really dull without you around."

"Of course it's been!" Sonic boasted proudly, before his gaze fell on Sticks who was still crouched in her defensive stance. "Sticks, relax, it's me."

"How do we know you're really Sonic?" she hissed. "You could be an alien overlord. Or a robot. Or an alien robot overlord!"

"An' if I am I give you full permission to tear me limb from limb. In either case, it's still nice to see you." Finally, his gaze fell to Amy who had remained silent throughout the whole ordeal. He gave her a tender smile which didn't go unnoticed by Tails. "Hey Ames."

"Hi Sonic," Amy replied with that same soft smile "I knew you'd make it back safely! So, where did you go? What did you see?"

Sonic motioned for his friends to gather around him, and even after a moment Sticks reluctantly joined the group. "'Kay, so I landed in this place called the Mushroom Kingdom, where I met someone named Mario... _"_

/~/

"Alright laddie, I can zap you back over to the Mushroom Kingdom in a jiffy!" E. Gadd told Mario as soon as Sonic had disappeared completely. He turned his concerned gaze to Mario. "That is, if you're alright of course."

Mario blinked, pondering on that question. "Yeah actually, I'm fine," he murmured, noticing how it felt as though a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. E. Gadd nodded and wandered over to the Pixelator, flipping the switch and pressing a few buttons.

"So you two had a talk, I assume?"

"We did," Mario confirmed. "And... it really did make me feel a bit better."

"That's good to hear," E. Gadd hummed. "But what was that kiss on the cheek about?"

"I'm not sure," Mario admitted. "But I don't think I'm going to read much into it. After all, he seemed to like someone else in his world, and... I need to move on. It's been three months, I've talked it out, and Weeg was right."

E. Gadd nodded. "Well said, sonny! Please, give the Princess my regards, and tell your brother hi."

Mario smiled and moved closer to the Pixelator. "I will, Professor E. Gadd."

/~/

Even though Mario overall felt less burdened, he still paused as he approached his and his brother's shared house. The last time they'd spoken had been an argument of sorts, and they'd never had a chance to properly patch things up. But Mario knew he needed to face the consequences of his actions, so taking a deep breath he pulled the key out of his pocket and fit it into the lock, turning the knob and stepping into the living room. "Bro! I'm home!"

No answer. Mario frowned. Was Luigi not home, either out shopping or visiting Daisy in Sarasaland? No, there would be a note otherwise. Luigi always left notes. Was he simply ignoring him thanks to how he'd taken off suddenly? "Bro, are you here?"

Mario could feel nervous sweat beginning to form on his forehead as he checked every room in the house until he got to the one he hadn't searched - their shared bedroom. Mario's heartbeat raced as he reached for the doorknob, not sure of what he'd find inside.

The door creaked open and Mario allowed himself to breathe as he spied Luigi sitting at the desk, his back turned to the door. He seemed to be holding something in his hands. "Bro? Are you okay?"

Luigi slowly turned, revealing that the item in his hands was the gold ring from Sonic's world. Luigi looked white as a sheet as he said two words that sent a torrent of conflicting emotions through Mario's mind, leaving him right back where he'd started before he'd found the passed-out hedgehog in the Goomba Woods.

"Sonic's alive."

 _~End~_

* * *

 **AN: I hate leaving you guys on a cliffhanger, but I'd planned for this fic to end like that since the beginning.  
**

 **Thank you all so much for reading this. What started off as a random idea turned into this, and I'd say that I'm happy with the finished product. I've wanted to write Boom!Sonic for awhile, and I hope I did him justice.**

 **As for a continuation of this particular storyline... I do have something in the works. However, it goes back to this series Super Smash Brothers roots, and since we don't exactly know who's returning as fighters, progress on it is slow and I want to wait until we have more information to start posting anything else regarding this timeline. I'll probably try to work more on _Moments_ in the waiting process.  
**

 **I guess that's all I have to say for now. Thank you again for reading.**

 **~Steel**


End file.
